About WEST

The WEST Fund was established in memory of Ros Wall who was instrumental in setting up a range of local and national projects to encourage women and girls to take up careers in non-traditional roles in Science, Engineering, Technology and the Built Environment.

Over the last 30 years there have been strong links in Sheffield between women and manual trades. Many women have been self employed, and there was a women’s garage and a women’s tool hire in the 1980s. There have also been some ground breaking initiatives in women’s education, and the Women’s Furniture Making Workshop continues to run at Sheffield College after 20 years. The Women’s Construction Centre at WICAT (Women in Construction Arts and Technology) is a voluntary organisation that developed from the same movement.

WEST is a voluntary organisation that is run by a group of trustees, a number of whom have been involved in this area since the 1980s.

Bursaries

Every year WEST makes small bursaries to give practical support to women and girls who are already learning or working in a non-traditional role or would like to do start to do this.

For the last three years the bursary money has been raised through an annual film night at Sheffield Hallam University.

If you would like to make a donation to this great cause, please contact WEST’s treasurer Jenny Fortune on 0114 225 3516 and j.fortune@shu.ac.uk; or WEST trustee Pat Morton on 0114 225 4695 and p.m.morton@shu.ac.uk

Outreach work

In 2013 WEST received funds to promote and support projects and organisations that encourage girls and women into non-traditional subjects and careers. It is now working in partnership with

WiSET (Women in Science, Engineering and Technology) at Sheffield Hallam University

WICAT (Women in Construction, Arts and Technology) at the Women’s Construction Centre, Sheffield

WEST’s aims

WEST’s constitution states that our aims are:

“To advance the education of women and girls in the subjects of science, engineering, technology, the built environment and with particular focus on craft and trade skills so that they may pursue non-traditional careers in these subject areas. This will be through the provision of an annual bursary scheme to support students and by supporting and promoting projects and organisations in South Yorkshire that work to encourage women and girls into non traditional subjects and careers through outreach and liaison work.”